六级真题2023年6月第二套 Passage Two
六级真题2023年6月第二套 Passage Two


Many oppose workplace surveillance, because of the inherent dehumanizing effect it has and the relentless pressure it brings. But it's on the rise around the world as firms look to become more efficient by squeezing more productivity from their workers. More than half of companies with over $750m in annual revenue used "non-traditional" monitoring techniques on staff last year.

Monitoring employee performance gives firms the ability to assess how their staff are performing and interacting, which can be good for both the firm and employees themselves. A growing number of analytics companies offer this service. They gather "data exhaust"left by employees'email and instant messaging apps, and use name badges equipped with radio-frequency identification devices and microphones. These can check how much time you spend talking, your volume and tone of voice, even if you do not dominate conversations. While this may sound intrusive, exponents argue that it can also protect employees against bullying and sexual harassment.
Some of this data analysis can produce unexpected results. For example, it was found that people who sat at 12-person lunch tables tended to interact, share ideas more and outperform those who regularly sat at four- person tables, a fact that would probably have gone undetected without such data analysis.
Over the last few years a Stockholm co-working space called Epicenter has gone much further and holds popular "chipping parties", where people can have microchips implanted in their hands. They can use the implants to access electronically-controlled doors, or monitor how typing speed correlates with heart rate. Implanted chips may seem extreme, but it is a relatively small step from ID cards and biometrics to such devices.
As long as such schemes are voluntary, there will probably be a growing number of convenience-oriented uses so that a substantial number of workers would opt to have a chip inserted. But if implanted chips are used to reduce slack time or rest breaks, that could prove to be detrimental. And if surveillance tools take away autonomy, that's when they prove most unpopular. A lot depends on how such monitoring initiatives are communicated and this could prevent possible revolts being staged.
If bosses don't communicate effectively,employees assume the worst. But if they're open about the information they're collecting and what they're doing with it, research suggests 46% of employees are generally okay with it. Although many such monitoring schemes use anonymised data and participation is voluntary, many staffers remain sceptical and fear an erosion of their civil liberties.
So workplace surveillance could be empowering for staff and useful for companies looking to become more efficient and profitable. But implemented in the wrong way, it could also become an unpopular tool of oppression that proves counterproductive.

1.1.Why are many people opposed to monitoring employee performance?

A It puts workers under constant pressure.

B It is universally deemed anti-human by nature.

C It does both mental and physical harm to employees monitored.

D It enables firms to squeeze maximal productivity from employees.

解析：选A。A细节理解题。文章第一段第一句提到许多人反对工作场所监控,因为这种做法本身就带有使人丧失人性的效果，同时,还会带来无尽的压力。文中的relentless pressure对应A项中的constant pressure,因此答案为A项。

2.2.What is the supporters' argument for workplace surveillance?

A It enables employees to refrain from dominating conversations.

B It enhances employees' identification with firms they work in.

C It can alert employees to intrusion into their privacy.

D It can protect employees against aggressive behavior.

解析：选D。D细节理解题。文中第二段最后一句提到支持者认为这可以保护员工免受欺凌和性骚扰，欺凌和性骚扰都是侵犯性的行为，因此工作场所监控可以保护员工免受攻击性行为的侵害,所以答案为 D项。

3.3.What does the author want to show by the example of different numbers of people interacting at lunch tables?

A Data analysis is key to the successful implementation of workplace surveillance.

B Analyzing data gathered from workers can yield something unexpected.

C More workmates sitting at a lunch table tend to facilitate interaction and idea sharing.

D It is hard to decide on how many people to sit at a lunch table without data analysis.

解析：选B。B推理判断题。文章第三段第二句举了一个例子:人们发现,与经常坐在四人桌旁的人相比，坐在 12人用餐桌旁的人更愿意互动、分享更多的想法,并且表现得更好。文中的例子都是为了支持某个论点服务的,也就是为本段第一句服务的，第一句提到某些数据分析可能会产生意想不到的结果,因此,不同数量的人在午餐桌上互动的例子是为了证明分析从员工那儿收集到的数据可以得到让人意想不到的结果,因此答案为B项。

4.4.What does much of the positive effect of monitoring initiatives depend on?

A How frequently employees are to be monitored.

B What specific personal information is being excluded.

C What steps are taken to minimize their detrimental impact.

D How well bosses make known their purpose of monitoring.

解析：选D。D细节理解题。文中第五段最后一句指出，监控举措要想有积极效果,很大程度上取决于如何传达此类监控措施。第六段第一、二句提到，如果老板不能与员工进行有效沟通,员工会把事情想得很糟糕。但是,如果他们对正在收集的信息以及对这些信息的处理持开放态度，研究表明，46%的员工通常都是能接受的。因此老板们表明他们的监控目的很重要,故答案为D项。

5.5. What concern do monitoring initiatives cause among many staffers?

A They may empower employers excessively.

B They may erode the workplace environment.

C They may infringe upon staffers' entitled freedom.

D They may become counterproductive in the long run.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。第六段最后一句提到尽管许多此类监控计划使用匿名数据,而且是自愿参与的,许多员工仍然持怀疑态度,担心他们的公民自由会受到侵害，由此可见员工担忧监控举指会侵犯他们应有的自由。故答案为C项。